Gabon’s government has suspended the national team until further notice and dissolved the technical staff, the interim minister of sports Dr Simplice-Desire Mamboula has confirmed.
The Panthers suffered a disappointing group stage exit on their return to the competition after missing out from the 2021 edition after finishing bottom of group F with three defeats.
The Central African nation narrowly lost to bordered neighbours Cameroon 1-0 in their group opener and fell to a shock 3-2 defeat against Mozambique.
The two-time quarter-finalists in 1996 and 2012 were on course to ending the tournament with a consolatory win but threw away a two-goal lead in a 3-2 defeat to reigning champions Cote d’Ivoire in their final group game in Marrakech.
🎥 HIGHLIGHTS: 🇬🇦 2–3 🇨🇮
— TotalEnergies AFCON 2025 (@CAF_Online) January 1, 2026
From behind to victorious, Côte d’Ivoire complete a stunning comeback against Gabon! #TotalEnergiesAFCON2025 pic.twitter.com/EbrawYk9Ih
“In view of the Panther’s disgraceful performance at the African Cup of Nations (….) the government has decided to dissolve the technical staff; to suspend the national team until further notice,” a statement from the ministry of sports said on Thursday January 1, 2026.
The government also resolved to “remove players Bruno Ecuele Manga Captain Bruno Ecuele Manga and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang from the team.
🚨 𝐄𝐗𝐂𝐋:
— Micky Jnr (@MickyJnr__) January 1, 2026
The Gabonese government has dissolved the technical staff of the Panthers and suspended the national football team until further notice. 🇬🇦
This decision comes as a result of Gabon’s poor performance at AFCON:
ℹ️ Group F
ℹ️ 3 matches played
ℹ️ 0 wins
ℹ️ Failed to… pic.twitter.com/0mftMVhTwt
Ecuele Manga’s defensive blunder gifted Mozambique a penalty in their crucial penultimate group clash which helped forward Geny Catamo double the lead for the Mambas after Faisal Abdul Bangal found the breakthrough five minutes earlier.
Aubameyang halved the deficit at the stroke of halftime and missed two key chances to level scores for his team. He returned to Marseille after Gabon’s early elimination and was not part of the team that lost to Cote d’Ivoire.
According to statistics, Ecuele Manga is the most capped Gabonese player with about 114 appearances while Aubameyang is Gabon’s all-time top scorer. The 36-year-old former Arsenal striker has scored at least 40 goals with the national team.